Lock



Feb. 17, 1925- 1,526,516

E. R. vlvEs LOCK Filed Aug. 2l, 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet l [Ill/lll,

Feb. 17, 1925.

E. R. VIVES LOCK Filed Aug. 2l. 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet z Patented Feb. 17, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. l

:EDWARD R. VIVES, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.,GASSIGNOR TO VESDAL CREATIONS, INC., OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A. CORPORATION .OF NEW YORK.

LOCK.

Application filed August 21, 1923. Serial No. 658,654.

To all wh om t lmay concern Be it known that EDWARD R. VIvEs,.a suhject of the King of Spain, and a resident of New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, has invented certain new and useful Improvements in Locks, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates tb combination locks of the multiple-key type or that type of lock in which the combination is adapted to be changed at will, eachcombin'ation requiring a distinctive key.

The object of the present invention is to provide a combination lock in which the number of possible combinations is practicallyV unlimited and in which the combination can be changed quickly and easily7 without disassembling the lbolt operating andI controlling mechanism. It is also an object of the invention to provide a lock of rugged and comparatively simple construction and having its elements designed to y reduce the cost of manufacture to a minimum. Other objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth hereinafter.

Referring to the accompanying drawings forA a particular description of a form of lock embodying the present invention:

.Figure 1 is a sectional view through the 3o lbolt and controlling.mechanism of the lock, this section being taken on a horizontal plane passingV through the axis of the bolt controlling mechanism. Figure 2 is Aa sectional view taken on the .35 line 2-2 of Figure 1, showing in elevation the bolt and the coacting end of the bolt controlling mechanism. v

Figures 8 and 4 are vertical sectional views through the bolt controlling mechanism. j

Fig. 5 shows a key form adapted to be converted into a key corresponding to any combination of the lock;

Figure 6 is a sectional View through the axis ofthe bolt controlling mechanism,- taken at right 'angles to the section plane of Figure 1.

Figure 7 is a perspective view of the bolt controlling mechanism detached.

Figures 8 and 9 are perspective viewsof certain elements of the bolt controlling mechanism.

Fig. 10 is a longitudinal section of a modified form of key barrel.

Fig. 11 illustrates a key adapted to cooperate with the barrel shown by Fig. 10. The present invention relates particularly to the combination, or bolt controlling, mechanism of the lock. Any suitable iform of bolt or latch .may be used in connection with this mechanism, so far as the present invention is concerned.

The bolt controlling mechanism is mounted in a cylindrical housing, or casing, 10, formed with or suitably attached to a plate 11. The door, or other closure, is provided adjacent its edge with a cylindrical aperture in which the casin 10 fits, the plate 11 being countersunk in t e outer face of the door so 'as to lie flush therewith. Plate 11 has a right-angular extension 12 which extends across the edge of the door and is counter-sunk therein, as clearly shownY in Figure 3. This extension has a rectangular opening 14 which registers with a slot formed in the edge of the door and extending to the cylindrical aperture in which "casing 10 is fitted. As shown best in Figure 7, approximately 90o of the wall of casing 10 is cut away opposite the opening 14 and the slot in registry therewith.

Referring more particularly to Figures 1 and 6, plate 11 has a circular shouldered aperture disposed coaxially with casing 10, and rotatably mounted in this aperture is the flanged end of a. barrel 15 which extends through the door ,and is rotatably mounted at its inner end in a plate 16 secured to the inner face of the door by screws 17. Loosely mounted on barrel 15 are a number of apertured disks, or wards 18 of the form shown in Figures 3, 4 and 8. All of these wards have the same form, each consisting of an apertured disk having a circular periphery adapted to fit the interior of casing 10 and having "a lug 19 projecting radially therefrom in the space formed by the'cutaway side of casing 10.. Each disk has a pair of inwardly opening radial slots 20 and 21 separated approximately 90. The radius of the aperture between the slots and from slot 21 to a point is substantially equal to the radius of barrel 15, while from point m to slot 20 the lradius is longer, thus forming .from point- Ian annular space 23 between shoulder 22 and slot 20. Slot 20 is shown deeper than slot 21, but this is not essential, and the slots may be of thesame depth.

Barrel 15 has an axial key-way 24 adapted to receive a key 25, such as shown in Fig. 5 and also has a slot 26 which is wider than l key way 24. The slot 26 is completely filled copllanar therewith. In each slot of the of pin 32 -with lug 33.

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' 35 and the end wards is a tumbler 28 which'may be of the same dimensions as tumbler 27, tle tw'o sets of tumblers, however, being disposed re-v versely so that the inclined ends thereof fit,

' as clearly shown in Figure '3. It will be understood therefore, that the slot20 of each ward has a tumbler 28 which is adapted to coact with a coplanartumbler27 in barrel 15. Figure 3 shows the normal position of the tumblers, and it will be observed that in this position the end of tumbler 28 projects slightly linto the slot 26, preventing rotation of the barrel in a counter-clockwise direction.

The wards may be retained in position by any suitable means. vFor this purpose, a plate 29 is fitted over the inner oend of barrel 15, the plate having a plurality of radially projecting lugs 30 which engage in notches cut in the inner en'd of housing 10.- For preventing axial displacement of plate .29, a pin 32 is removably mounted in a diametrical hole formed in the end of barrel 15. In the normal angular position of they barrel, one end of pin 32 engages a lug 33 on plate 29, preventing rotation of the barrel ina clockwisedirectiom looking at Fig. 3. It will be understood, therefore, that the barrel is normally held frpm rotation in either direction; in a'counter-clockwise'direction, by the engagement of one or more tumblers 28 with the edge of slot 26, and in a clock-wise direction, by the engagement Any suitable form of bolt or combined bolt and latch may be employed for locking the door. vI have illustrated` in Figures 1, 2 and 6, a bolt consisting of two latch members 34 rigidly connected by an inwardly extending open rectan ular frame 35 provided with laterally projecting ,guide pins 86 which engagethe side walls ofa housing 37 screwed on the inner face of the door. A suitable sp'rinor 38 between the end/'ot frame wall of housing 37 normally l 'holds the bolt projected. A linger piece 39 having a sha-nk projecting through a slot in housing 37 and secured to the end of frame 35 renders-"the bolt operable from the in` side. A connection between the bolt and barrel 15 is lprovided consisting of a cam 40 fastened to the end of said barrel by meansof screws 41 tapped in the inner end of the barrel.' Cam 40 is,` formed with a flat or straight portion which normally lies r'against the end of frame 35 and with cam portions at each side of the straight portion, whereby the bolt is adapted to be operated by turning barrel 15 in either direction, to suit doors opening either to the right or to the-left.` In normal position the barrel is held by the coaction of camv 40 with spring pressed bolt 35 in t-he position where -pin 32 contacts lug 33, in which position the slot 26 in the barrel is in exact alignment with the slots 20 'or 21 of the wards.

The combination of the0 lock is determined vby the relative angular positions of wards 418. When a ward is in the position shown in Figure 3, its slot 20 and tumbler 2 8 are opposite slot 26 in the barrel. In this po sition the tumbler 28 has gravitated to its lowest position where it engages the edge of slot 26, preventing rotation ofthe barrel in a counter-clockwise direction. When'.

a ward is turned through an angle of approximately 90 from the position shown in Fig. 3, its lug 19 abuts the lower edge of counter-clockwise direction, looking at Fig-- ure 4. It will be clear, therefore, that Iin order to rotate the barrel in a counter-clockwise direction, looking at Figures 3 and 4 (clock-wise looking at the outer end of the barrel), a key must be inserted which has its projections land spaces so arranged that each tumbler-27 which is opposite a tuml bler 28 will be raised and each tumbler 27 which is opposite a slot-21 will be unaffected. If a key having a combination of projections and spaces, which does not correspond to the combination ofy the lock, is inserted, one or more tumblers 28 will not be raised and one or more tumblers 27 will be raised into engagement with a slot or slots 2l, thereby preventing rotation of the barrel. The number of wards may be varied in accordance with the number of pos sible combinations desired. I have illustrated a controlling mechanism provided with eighteen wards, which number provides a practically unlimited rang-ebt combinations. j y f y v The wards (are maintained in their set positions by means of a block' 42, which is,

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door" in registry with the opening 14 of plate ,12.- The inner end of the block is curved to fit the peripheries of wards 18 between lugs 19, as clearly shown in Fi 3, andthe outer end ofsaid block lies flus with the outer surface of plate 12. This block is removably held in position by means of a screw 43 which passes through the block and has its end tapped in a hole formed in plate 11, the head of said screw being countersunk in plate 16.

When it is desired to change the combina-` tion of the lock it is-only necessary to unscrew bolt 43, remove block 42, and rota-te. one or more wards through an angle of 90, or the angle limited by engagement of lug 19 with the opposite edges of casing 10. Block 42 is then replaced, holding the wards securely in their adjusted positions. Suitable finger recesses may be provided in the outer face of block 42 for its easy manipulation.v a

Of course when a new combination has been set up, a new key corresponding to the new combination is required. Fig. 5 shows a key form which can be converted with facility into a key corresponding to any l combination within the range of the lock.

This key form has a number of teeth 44 corresponding to the number of wards 18. The teeth have rounded ends adapted to cam under the tumblers 27 and are of `sufcient length to raise tumblers 28 entirely out of slot 26 or to raise tumblers 27 into engagement with the edge of slot 21, as the case may be. It is only necessary to lift tumblers 27 a slight amount to effect their unlocking .or locking action, and the teeth 44 therefore may be only a small fraction of an inch in length. The teeth are adapted to be easily broken off, and for this purpose they may be joined to the body of the key by a weakened, or reduced, portion, which, while of sufficient strength to withstand ordinary usage, yields to a force hwhich can be exerted conveniently without the medium of special tools.

The combination for which the lock is set is readily ascertained, when block 42 is removed, by inspection of the angular positions of wards 18, as indicated by the positions of their lugs 19. In Figure 7, counting from the outermost ward, the first, second, third, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, twelfth, thirteenth, fourteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth wards have their lugs up, indicating that the slots 20 of these. wards are opposite the slot 26 in the barrel; while the fourth, fifth, tenth, eleventh, fifteenth and sixteenth wards have their lugs down, indicating that the slots 21 of these wards are opposite the slot 26. To form a key for I this combination from the key formillustrated by Figure 5, the fourth, fifth, tenth, eleventh, fifteenth and sixteenth tooth should be broken olf. Such a key when in-.

serted in the key-way of the barrel will move all tumblers 28 out of engagement with barrel 15 and leave unaffected those tumblers 27 which are opposite the slots 21, thereby permitting rotation of barrel 15 to ,retract the bolt, itilieing noted that the space between the barrel and the'wards and extending from point a: to slot 20 permits rotation i ofthe barrel when tumblers 27 are projected beyond the periphery of the barrel.

Of course it 1s not necessary to use up a ,key which was formed to unlock the combination of Fig. 7 could be used for the new combination bysimply breaking 0E its first tooth.

In Fig. 11 I have illustrated a key having an edge of irregular or undulating profile opposite the teeth and in Fig. 10, a barrel 15 having the bottom of its key-way 24 correspondingly undulated. Obviously, with this construction it is impossible to unlock the combination except with aI key which not only has its teeth and spaces corresponding to the positions of the wards but also an undulating edge corresponding to the undulations in the bottom of the key-way. It is proposed to manufacture locks in accordance with this invention in several different numbers or formsof undula-tions and also of course/'key blanks with corresponding profiles. In such a system of locks it is desirable to identify the keys corresponding to the particular undulations of the several styles of locks. For this purpose the keys and lockswill be formed with suitable identification marks, for example, the keys corresponding to a articular style of lock would be formed with a common number, which numbenwould also be borne by the loc Y A lock of the above described construction possesses many features of lsuperiority, among which may be mentioned, simplicity and ruggedness of construction, low cost of manufacture because of its relatively few and easily made parts, the large number of possible combinations, and the ease with which anew combination may be set up and with which a new key corresponding to 'such combination may be formed.

Now having particularly described a form of my invention without intending to limit the scope thereof, what I claim as new is:

l. In a lock of the kind described, bolt controlling mechanism comprising a barrel havingl an axial key-way adapted when rotated to operate a bolt, a plurality of apertured disks mounted on Said barrel each hav-- ing two angularly spaced inwardly opening slots, a number of key-operable tumblers mounted for radial movements in said barrel corresponding to the number of said disks in alignment with the co-acting tumbler, andl a tumbler in one of the slots of each disk adapted when the disk is in one position to rest on its coacting tumbler and engage said barrel to prevent rotation thereof, said disk in its other position having its other slot over said coacting tumbler so as to` be engaged thereby when said tumbler is raised to prevent rotation of said barrel.

2. In a lock of the kind described, bolt controlling mechanism comprising a barrel having an axial key way adapted when rotated to operate a bolt, a plurality of members coaxial with said barrel each having two angularly spaced inwardly opening slots, a number of key-operable tumblers mounted for radial movements in said barrel corresponding to the number of said members and coplanar therewith, each of said members being rotatable through a limited angle to bring one of the other of its slots over and in alignment with the coacting tumbler, and a tumbler in one of the slots of each member.

3. In a lock of the kind described, bolt controlling mechanism comprising a barrel, .a plurality of apertured disks loosely mounted thereon, all of said disks being of identical form and having two angularly spaced inwardly opening radial slots, said barrel having an axial key way and an axial slot of greater width communicating with said key way and opening through the side of said barrel, a number of tumblers in said axial slot corresponding to the number of said disks and coplanar therewith', each of said disks being rotatable on said barrel to bring one or the other of its slots over and in alignment with the axial slot in said barrel, a tumbler in one-ef the slots of each disk adapted to rest on its coaeting tumbler in said axial slot and to project slightly into said slot.

4. In a lock of the kind' described, bolt controlling mechanism comprising a barrel adapted when rotated to operate a bolt, a plurality of apertured disks mounted on said barrel each having two angularly spaced inwardl opening slots, said barrel having an axial ey way and an axial slot commimicating with said key way and opening through 'one side of the barrel,- a number of tumblers in said axial slot corresponding to the number of said disks' and coplanar therewith, each of said disks being rotatable through a limited angle to bring one or the other of its slots over and in alignment with the coacting tumbler, and a tumbler in one of the slots coplanar therewith, each of said disks being rotatable through a limited angle to bring one or the other of its slots over and in alignment with the coacting tumbler, and a tunibler in one of the slots' ot each member adapted whenl opposite its coacting tumbler to engage said barrel and prevent rotation thereof.

6. In ay lock of the kind described, bolt controlling mechanism comprising a barrel having an axial key way adapted when rotated to operate a bolt, a plurality of aper- 1 .tured disks mounted on said barrel each having two angularly spaced inwardly opening slots, the aperture of each disk having substantially the same radius as that of the' barrel between said slots and to a point substantially beyond one of said slots and having a substantially greater radius from said point to the other slot, said barrel having an axial slot'of greater width than said key way opening through the side thereof, a number of tumblers in said axial slot corresponding to the number of said disks and roplanar therewith, each of Vsaid disks being rotatable through a limited angle to bring one or the-other of its slots over and in alignment with its coacting tumbler, and a tumbler in one ofthe slots of each disk adapted to rest on its coacting tumbler and project slightly into said axial slot.

7. In a lock of the kind described` bolt controlling mechanism comprising a. barrel having an axial key way adapted when rotated to operate a bolt, a plurality of apertured disks of identical form mounted on said barrel each having two angularly spaced inwardly opening slots, a number of key-operable tumblers mounted for radial movement in, said barrel corresponding to the number of said disks and co lanar therewith, each Ilof said disks being rotatable through a limited Iangle to bring one or the other of its slots over and in alignment with the cowcting tumbler, Athe aperture of each disk being of .substantially the same radius as said barrel between the slots and to a point substantially beyond one of said slots and having a substantially greater radius from said point tothe other slot, and a tumbler in said other slot of each disk adapted to rest onits'coacting tumbler and engage said barrel to prevent rotation thereof.

8. In a lock of the kind described, bolt controlling mechanism comprising a plate adapted to be secured to the outer face of a door, .a cylindrical casing secured to the inner face of said plate at right angles thereto, said plate being provided with a circular yapertuie coaxial with said casing, a barrel hav ing its outer end rotatably mounted in said aperture and having an axial keyy way opening at said outer end and an axial slot communicating with said key way and opening through the side of said barrel, a plurality of apertured disks strung on said barrel and having their outer peripheries fitting said casing, said casing being cut away at one side and each of said disks having a radial lug adapted to Contact the edges formed by cutting away said casing to limit rotation of said disks through a predetermined angle, each' of said disks having two angularly spaced inwardly opening slots, the aperture of each disk having substantially the radius of the barrel between said slots and to a point beyond one of said slots and having a substantially greater radius from said point to the other slot, a number of tumblers in said axial slot corresponding to the number of said disks and each having an inclined outer end, a tumbler in said other slot of each disk having an inclined end adapted to fitthe inclined end of its coacting tumbler, said disks when rotated through said predetermined angle having one or the other of their slots over said axial slot. h

9. In. a lock ofthe kind described, bolt controlling mechanism comprising a plate adapted to be secured to the outer face of a door, a cylindrical casing secured to the inner face of said plate at right angles thereto,

said plate having a circular aperture coaxial having two angularly spaced inwardly opening slots, a number of tumblers mounted for radial movement in said barrel corresponding to the number of said disks and coplanar therewith, and a tumbler in one of the slots of each disk adapted when aligned with its coacting plunger to engage said barrel and prevent rotation thereof. l

l0. In a lock, an elongated member having an axial slot consisting of a lower portion adapted to receive a key and a wider upper po-rtion opening through said member, a plurality of plates adjustably mounted in planes transverse to said member, each of said plates lhaving two spaced slots adapted to register with said axial slot, a number of tumblers loosely mounted in the wider upper portion of said axial slot corresponding to the number of said plates and coplana'r therewith, each of said plates being adjusta-A ble to bring one or the other of its slots into alignment with the coacting tumbler, and a tumbler in one of the slots of each plate adapted to rest on its coacting tumbler and to project slightly into said axial slot.

.In testimony whereof I hereunto afiix my signature.

EDWARD R. VIVES. 

